Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-10-04
THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY.
Continued from Third Page.

unjust and oppressive than Tie Tariff
lax OF salt, coal and lumber. and other
articles upon which duties are laid. But
it is said that the internal revenue lew Is
in it's nature and irritating in
its operations, and that, for these res-
sons, it ought to be repealed. If those
who make this argument were not them
selves insisting upon the perpetustion Of
q much more lnquisitorial and irritating
system OF taxation, 1t would be entitled !
to greater consideration; but when the
advocates of laws under which the per- |
sons and houses of the people are searched
and their property seized without ACCUSE
ton or warrant profess to be opposed to |
harsh and irquisi,orisl methods, Ethere is |
at least apparent reason 10 doubt their
sincerity. 1t is true that both the in
ternal revenue and the tariff laws
are 5'nQuisitorial and liable to
abuse by incompetent or arbitrary
officials, but to certsin extent this
is unavoidable il the payment Of the tax
is to be enforced; and If the same articles
were taxed in the ssme way by the sew
ersl states instead Of the general govern
ment, there is 10 reason to belive that the
laws or their administration would be
LEES objectionable. The true policy is to
mitigate the severity of the laws IS far IS
possible, and provide for such an admin
istraticn Of them as will prevent unneces-
sary hardship and inconvenience to the
people; and this the Democratic party
has more than once attempted 10 do, but
WAS prevented by Republican votes in
Congress.
The statement constantly made that the
Democratic party, if it had the power,
would at once reduce the rates of duty to
such 9 degree IS TO give the products Of
foreign labor an advantage in our own
mark It's, IS IS grOuudlesS as
THE NUMEROUS OTHER FALSE PREDIC-
TIoNs
with which the people were deluded for
twenty years by Republican orators and
newspapers, and yet il has been success
fully used to alarm the ls0oring classes,
and prevent them from opposing sys-
TEN of taxation which, while it does not
increase the amount OF their wages,
greatly diminishes their purchasing
power. Every Well-inf0rmed man knows
that any average rate Of taxation upon
imported goods which would enable the
government TO realize the amount of rev.
eaue it will be compelled to rsise from
that source, would much more than COM
pensate for the difference between the
cost of labor here and in other mnnutac-
turing countries. The amount Of this
difference has been grossly exaggerated,
but even accepting the most extrava-
CANT statements that have been
made upon the subject, it can be easily
SHOWN That the present tariff rates are
greatly in excess of what is required to
equelize the cost of production, SO far as
labor constitutes an element of that cost
and it cannot be shown that any Demo
cratic proposition, heretofore made would
have reduced the average rate below that
point. Whether the cost of ocean and in
lald transportation, sea insurance, COM
missions and other charges to which
goods produced in other countries are
subj cted, are not ordinarily sufficient,
without tariff taxes, TO give the domestic
product considerable advantage in the
home market is question which will rot
ROW be discussed, the intention being
simply 70 state the facts that the rates o!
duty are. snd will probably remain
much higher than is needed for that pur.
pose.
THE RESULT OF COMPROMISE.
As theoretical perfection is scarcely
ever sttsined IN legislation the first meas
Ure for the reduction OF the revenue anC
taxation, as already intimated, will prob
ably DC the result of compromise, and H.
Clude both tariff and internal taxes O
the three classes Of articles now subiec
20 taxation under the internal revenu.
laws-distlled spirits, malt liquors anC
manufactured tobscco-the exemption O
the last would be the least Objectionable
and If provision for the total or partis
repeal OF that tax should be included il
proper bill for the reduction Of tn,
tariff duties, il would, as a compromis,
measure, be almost certain to pass tn,
Democratic House of representatives
Whether the Republican Senate would
take the responsibility OF insisting upol
free whisky and free beer as an ultlmet
um, and thus force the question into tn
neXv presidential campaign, is a matte
shout which no prediction can now b
msde
Closely connected with the question O
revenue reduction is
THE QUESTION OF HONESTY AND ECoNoM,
IL the public expenditures. That tn
ordinary expenditures of the government
not including pensions or payments upo
rhe principal and interest of the war debt
nave enormously outgrown the increas
va popuiellOH duu puDIlC business, Is
proposition which csn be mathematician
demonstrated; and as this is reversal G
the rule tnat prevails under sound en-
heslthy conditions of the public service
i proves the existence Of some vice il
our present system that ought to be ered
iCctsd. Since the +Ih of March, 1861, tn
Democratic party has not had control @
both the Legislative and executive de
partments OF the government for sipgl
day, nor has it, since that date, had con
troll CT both branches of the Legislative
department c. the same time. 1t can no;
therefore, be justly held responsible,
either Cor the legislation or the executiv
policy under which this great increase G
expenditures Was inaugurated and main
tSined. With the opposition OF Repub
lican Senate, the Democratic House c
Representatives has SO far been unabl
either 10 repeal or amend existing law;
or properly TO curtail expenditures unde
them, and, although the present admin
istradon has succeeded, by caretu
attention to details, in efecfin
very considerable savings in man
branches of the public service, the aggre
gate is still much too large, and ought t
be further reduced. But this can be don
only by legislation, and if the task is in
diligently performed upon q defnit
system or Dan which commandments tn